Former President Barack Obama is endorsing former Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger in the race for Virginia governor and starring in two new digital ads for his campaign.
“Virginia’s elections are some of the most important in the country this year,” Obama says in both ads, shared first with NBC News, that focus on the economy and abortion rights. It also says in both ads: “Every vote counts.”
Virginia is one of two states, along with New Jersey, holding gubernatorial elections this year. A year after the 2024 elections, both races will be closely watched as indicators of how voters are responding to President Donald Trump and where the political winds are blowing ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Trump has not yet entered the race with his own endorsement. Spanberger is running against Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears.
Spanberger has consistently led Earle-Sears in public polls and has outspent her on the airwaves. He also has history on his side: the party that controls the White House has lost 11 of the last 12 elections.
The only exception came during Obama’s second term, when Democrat Terry McAuliffe prevailed in 2013 amid a government shutdown, negatively impacting Virginians who work for the federal government.
Even with those advantages, turning out voters can be difficult in an off-year election, and Obama is working to remind voters what is at stake in the race.
“We know that Republicans will continue to attack abortion rights and women’s rights. That’s why it’s important to have the right governor, and I’m proud to support Abigail Spanberger,” he says in one of the ads.
The other ad highlights the cost of living, a topic Spanberger has focused on throughout his career.
“Republican policies are raising costs for working families, so billionaires can get huge tax cuts,” Obama says. “As governor, Abigail will stand up for Virginia families. She will work to build an economy that works for everyone, not just big corporations and the wealthy. But that won’t happen without you.”
Obama won Virginia twice, first by 6 percentage points in 2008 and then by 4 points in 2012.
Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who cannot run for re-election due to term limits, won his race in the state by 2 points in 2021.
Obama also stars in a television ad in California, where voters will cast ballots in November on a proposal to allow the state to redraw its legislative lines. Gov. Gavin Newsom led the mid-decade redistricting effort to attract more Democratic-leaning districts after Texas lawmakers redrawn their congressional boundaries to benefit the Republican Party.
Obama has been more vocal in his criticism of Trump amid the Democratic Party’s leadership vacuum following Trump’s victory last year.
Other high-profile Democrats — and potential future presidential hopefuls — are headed to Virginia and New Jersey ahead of Election Day. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will campaign with Spanberger next week, and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear was also recently in Virginia to boost his candidacy.
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and his wife, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, recently campaigned for Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic candidate for governor of New Jersey. And Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer are also expected to campaign with Sherrill this weekend.
